The Irish fans have been starved of tournament football for a decade and win, lose or draw, they will be in full voice this summer to lift their heroes in Poland and Ukraine.

And the Irish are not without hope of making it through to the knock-out stage of the competition as they will begin their campaign with a 14-match unbeaten record (Ireland 7/2 To Qualify).

They have also kept 11 clean sheets in that sequence of results and, while goals might be at a premium, opposition teams will find it hard to break down a tough defence.

Shay Given’s recovery from injury is certainly a bonus and it is likely that the Aston Villa keeper will be busy against Croatia and throughout the three group matches.

He will need protection from his back four and much will depend on the experience of Richard Dunne and John O’Shea, with Sean St Ledger and Stephen Ward tipped to start.

Ward has been making all the right noises in the build-up to the Croatia clash and has spoken about how tight their defence has become but they will need to score a goal or two to win and, in Robbie Keane (6/1 First Goalscorer), Giovanni Trapattoni has one of the top marksmen to call upon.

His record at international level is phenomenal and the only question mark surrounds his decision to play in the USA and whether or not he will be as sharp as the European-based marksmen.

Kevin Doyle looks set to partner the former Spurs man up front and he will be more of a provider than a prolific hit-man but would love to add to his 10 international goals.

The midfield will be key to Ireland’s chances as they will be up against talented Croatian schemers, including Spurs’ star Luca Modric.

With the men in green expected to concede the majority of possession to the opposition, the likes of Damien Duff, Aiden McGeady, Keith Andrews and Glenn Whelan will have a lot of defensive work to do in support of the back four and the tournament will be a real test of their fitness and stamina.

Duff will need to be at the top of his game to create chances for the front two and Trapattoni will be hoping he can rediscover the form that made him one of the most sought-after players in the Premier League just a few years ago.

Although Croatia are not the side they were a few years back, they still have enough talent to cause Ireland problems and, in Modric, have one of the best players in Europe.

He pulls the strings for the Balkan state and will need to remain fit and be at the top of his game if Croatia are to reach the last eight.

But Modric is not the only familiar face to British fans as there are several Croatians who ply their trade in the Premier League.

Everton fans know all about Nikica Jelavic (5/1 First/Last Goalscorer), who has been a revelation for the Toffees after arriving in January.

He will be a goal threat on Sunday (Jelavic 9/4 To Score Anytime) and will need to be watched such is his form and prowess in front of goal.

There are concerns over the Croatia defence, however, with Jo Simunic not at his best as he has not been playing regular football.

Former Spurs’ stopper Vedran Corluka, Gordon Schildenfeld and Ivan Strinic look set to complete the back four and there is every chance that Ireland’s front two could profit against these players with decent service.

Another Tottenham old boy, Niko Kranjcar, will be a threat and has the experience of nearly 70 caps to draw on for this clash and beyond.

Captain Darijo Srna has been a regular on the right flank for almost a decade, and is one of the most influential players in the side.

Slaven Bilic has opted to use him on the right side of midfield as opposed to in defence and he will be a constant menace to the Ireland full backs.

A record of 19 strikes in 90 games proves that he is a goal threat and he will need to be marshalled well if the Irish are to win this one.

This has all the makings of a tight game as Ireland will give little away in defence and Croatia may struggle to break them down but both sides may need to win to qualify.

Want £200 Free? Click here to visit Bet365 and claim your free money.

Birmingham City

The Tangerines head into the decider with a 1-0 advantage after a Curtis Davies own-goal handed them the slenderest of victories when the two sides met at Bloomfield Road on Friday.

But Blues boss Chris Hughton is not ready to wave the white flag just yet, and is backing his men to overturn the deficit and book their place at Wembley.

“They are probably slight favourites because they have that one-goal lead, but the semi-final is not over yet at all,” said the former Newcastle United manager.

“My thoughts are very much on how we play and if we’re able to impose ourselves on them more than perhaps we did then we’ve got a chance.”

Birmingham are 10/11 favourites to win the second leg after 90 minutes, while Blackpool are available at the relatively generous price of 3/1.

There is no away goals rule in the Football League play-offs, which means that any Birmingham victory by a one-goal margin would be enough to take the tie into extra time.

City are priced at 6/1 to win the game 1-0, while 2-1 is available at 7/1 and 3-2 is on offer at 25/1.

Hughton’s men took the spoils during the regular Championship season, securing a last-gasp 2-2 draw at Bloomfield Road before recording a comfortable 3-0 victory on home turf.

Birmingham would undoubtedly be delighted to repeat the feat when they welcome the Seasiders to St Andrews for a second time this season, and a repeat scoreline of 3-0 is available at 14/1.

Both teams have shown prolific form in front of goal this season, with only Southampton and West Ham finding the net more often during the regular campaign.

Leading the way for Birmingham is experienced former Premier League star Marlon King, although he has been ably supported in the ‘goals for’ column by team-mates Chris Burke and Nikola Zigic.

Zigic found the net the last time these two sides met at St Andrews and is worth considering at 6/1 to score the first goal or the same price to get the last, having been left on the bench in the first leg.

But while King has led the way for Birmingham, Blackpool have depended on another former Premier League star for goals.

Sunderland legend and former Blues marksman Kevin Phillips has netted 16 times this season and is priced rather generously at 15/2 to score the first goal and 15/2 to score the last.

The experienced star is certainly worth considering, and would surely love nothing more than to fire his side into the final at the expense of his old club.

Want £200 Free? Click here to visit Bet365 and claim your free money.

Manchester City

City are up first as they make the trip to Portugal to face Sporting at the Jose Alvalade Stadium with a 6pm kick-off. Roberto Mancini’s men booked their place against Sporting thanks to a 4-0 home win against holders FC Porto in the previous round, although they were trailing 2-1 from the first leg in Portugal which will no doubt give the hosts hope of emulating their league leaders going into this game.

However, City are in strong form having won their last six games, conceding just one goal in the process, so will be optimistic of making life easier for themselves in this round. Mancini is set to hand Sergio Aguero and David Silva starting roles after resting them for Saturday’s 2-0 win against Bolton, while James Milner and Edin Dzeko are set to start having only played minor roles in that game.

Kolo Toure is likely to play at right-back due to injuries to Micah Richards and Pablo Zabaleta, with Nigel de Jong set to replace the suspended Yaya Toure.

Sporting go into the game on the back of their first defeat under new coach Ricardo Sa Pinto, 1-0 away at Vitoria Setubal on Saturday, having won the previous three to occupy fourth spot in the Portuguese league.

However, they have been strong on home soil in Europe, having won every tie played in front of their own fans so far this season, which is a stern warning to City that they should not turn up and be complacent for this test.

Sporting have been hit by the loss of top scorer Ricky van Wolfswinkel due to injury so Matias Fernandez and Andre Carillo will fight it out to feature, with Uruguayan Sebastian Ribas ineligible to play.

The two sides have not faced each other competitively, but with Sporting boasting a formidable record at home and City in a rich run of form, they could well cancel each other out.

Prediction: Draw 90 Minutes @ 5/2
Value Bet: Sporting/Draw HT/Ft @ 12/1

Manchester United get their last-16 clash with Spanish outfit Athletic Bilbao underway at Old Trafford at 8.05pm looking to shake off their uncertain home form of one win in four games in European competition this season.

Sir Alex Ferguson’s men crashed out of the Champions League at the group stage after dropping points on home soil to the likes of Basel and Benfica, while a 2-1 second-leg defeat to Ajax at the Theatre of Dreams almost ended their Europa League bid after they had won the first leg 2-0 in Amsterdam.

However, the Red Devils’ form has been on the up in the Premier League since that defeat, with successive wins at Norwich and Tottenham keeping them within two points of league leaders Manchester City.

And they will be looking to avoid any more problems against Athletic Bilbao as Ferguson will want a comfortable lead to take to Spain for the second leg.

United do have problems on the injury front as Paul Scholes sat out training on Wednesday, while Michael Owen was also absent and Antonio Valencia trained on his own as he continues his recovery from a hamstring strain.

Ferguson blamed a lack of experience for the defeat to Ajax and will want to inject some older heads into the starting XI to ensure they do not have to travel in a week’s time chasing the tie against a Bilbao side with a strong home record in Europe.

Coach Marcelo Bielsa has guided the side to within a point of the fourth and final Champions League qualification spot in La Liga courtesy of a 2-0 Basque derby win over Real Sociedad at the weekend, while they have won three and drawn one of their home games in the Europa League when looking ahead to the second leg.

Midfielder Ander Herrera is adamant that his side are making the trip to Old Trafford to come back as winners, while towering frontman Fernando Llorente (15/2 – First Goalscorer) is a player who could pose a real threat to the United goal if he is not carefully marshalled.

It looks set to be an open tie and with United knowing they could do with a win to take to Spain next week, expect a few goals and the hosts to come out on top.

Prediction: Home Win 90 Minutes @ 1/2
Value Bet: United To Win 3-1 Correct Score @ 9/1

Want £200 Free? Click here to visit Bet365 and claim your free money.

Ireland were one of the seeded sides when the draw was made in Krakow earlier on Thursday, but could have been handed more testing opposition in the shape of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Turkey or Montenegro, who finished runners up to England in their qualification group.

However, the draw was kind as they were handed a winnable tie against the small Baltic nation, who have never played at a major tournament and reached their first ever qualification play-off courtesy of second spot in Group C – a massive 10 points behind winners Italy.

Trapattoni, who watched his side make their sixth play-offs after a narrow 2-1 win against Armenia on Tuesday secured second spot behind Russia in Group B, paid full respect to Estonia but must feel confident that he will lead the Irish to their first European Championships since Germany in 1988 (4/11 To Qualify).

Focusing on being drawn away in the first leg, which will be played on November 11 or 12 ahead of the home leg at Dublin’s Aviva Stadium on November 15, the Italian said: “It is extremely positive for Ireland that we will play the first leg away.

“We should not underestimate our opposition, or any team, including Estonia.

“To have made it through to the play-off, they must have quality and mental fortitude.”

Tarmo Ruutli’s Estonia (2/1 To Qualify) appeared overjoyed to just reach the play-offs so will not be expecting much from the two games.

However, following two wins against Northern Ireland during the group qualification programme, they could stun the Irish if complacency creeps into Trapattoni’s squad.

Ireland will be hit by the loss of star striker Kevin Doyle for at least the first leg of the play-offs following his red card against Armenia on Tuesday.

However, former striker John Aldridge is in no doubt that Shane Long will step into his shoes and help fire Ireland through what he feels is “the easiest draw” they could have got.

“Shane Long has done really well when he has deputised for either Robbie (Keane) or Kevin so it’s a great opportunity for him,” he said.

History is also on Ireland’s side ahead of the games as they defeated Estonia 2-0 home and away during qualification for the 2002 World Cup in Japan and South Korea.

Looking at the rest of the draw, it easy to see why pulling Estonia out of the hat is deemed as a good thing for the Republic.

Croatia (4/6 To Qualify) were drawn out to face Turkey (11/10) with an away-day first leg, the Czech Republic will take on Montenegro, who held England to two draws in qualifying, while Portugal (2/5) were paired up against Bosnia-Herzegovina (7/4) in arguably the tastiest of the four head-to-heads.

Want £200 Free? Click here to visit Bet365 and claim your free money.

Both Old Firm managers are desperate to lead their team to glory for different reasons, with Walter Smith hoping to bow out at the top by sealing his tenth SPL crown and third straight since he was brought back in for a second spell at the Ibrox helm.

Neil Lennon’s story is well documented and if the Celtic boss, in his first full season in charge of any club, can end Rangers’ stranglehold on Sunday he will have been victorious amid the most trying personal circumstances of any sporting figure in recent memory.

Celtic’s task is simple – defeat Motherwell at Celtic Park (Celtic 1/5, Motherwell 12/1 – Match Betting) and hope that Kilmarnock can either win or draw against Rangers at Rugby Park.

However, Kilmarnock (9/1 Match Betting) are anything but Rangers’ bogey side – having lost their last seven meetings home and away over the course of the last two seasons (Rangers 2/7).

Kilmarnock, who will finish fifth, have had a good season under Mixu Paatelainen and caretaker-boss Kenny Shiels, but they have again been unable to trouble Rangers.

The Ibrox club are the only club they have failed to take points off and in their last meeting, which Rangers won 3-2, Killie caused their own downfall by conceding two penalties and having a player sent off.

Celtic Park will be full to capacity with fans hoping for a glimpse of the helicopter hovering overhead at 2.30pm and home advantage could enable the Hoops to at least finish the season on a high.

January signing Kris Commons misses out through a silly suspension picked up in the midweek victory over Hearts at Tynecastle and Israel midfielder Beram Kayal is another key loss to injury.

Gary Hooper (11/4 to score 2 or more goals) has had a great season in attack for Celtic and he has the chance of a consolation prize if he can score two more goals to draw level with Kenny Miller in the top scorer chart.

Want £200 Free? Click here to visit Bet365 and claim your free money.

Who will be the players that will step forward and help their club lift the trophy or avoid the drop in the coming weeks?

The battle for survival has rarely been closer with just seven points difference between rock bottom and 10th place in the Premier League table.

With a new stadium just around the corner it would be disastrous for West Ham United to drop down into the Championship.

Only a few weeks ago it looked like the Hammers (7/4 to be relegated) would struggle to stay up this season but their inspirational skipper Scott Parker has been instrumental in their turnaround of fortunes.

The former Chelsea and Newcastle United midfielder has been tireless in the middle of the park, which has not gone unnoticed as England boss Fabio Capello started the 30-year-old in the Euro 2012 qualifying win over Wales last weekend.

West Ham have to face Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea before the end of the season and Parker will be essential to their chances of survival.

Another side struggling at the bottom of the table is Wolves (7/4 to be relegated) and their position has not been made any easier as striker Kevin Doyle has been ruled out for the rest of the season, after he picked up knee ligament damage on international duty with Republic of Ireland.

Step up potential England midfielder Matt Jarvis, who has been a stand-out player for Wolves this term.

The 24-year-old could make his England debut against Ghana on Tuesday night at Wembley, which would be well deserved if he makes it onto the hallowed turf.

Jarvis’ pace and creativity will be crucial for Wolves as they hope to continue their unbeaten run of four games and avoid a return to the Championship.

Despite winning the Carling Cup this season, Birmingham City (6/4 to be relegated) could consider this a campaign to forget if they finish in the bottom three.

After tremendous effort in the Carling and FA Cup they must now focus on Premier League survival and the experience of Kevin Phillips could be key.

The veteran striker has been a super sub for Blues this season in cup football but Birmingham boss Alex McLeish could use the former Sunderland goal machine to bring a bit of spark to the side as they hope to climb up from 19th place in the league.

At the top of the table, chasing the title are rivals Manchester United and Arsenal, with both sides desperate for silverware this season.

United (1/2 to win the Premier League) will be looking to their Portuguese star Nani for the creativity to unlock sides between now and the end of the campaign.

The former Sporting Lisbon star has admitted that his confidence has been knocked since he was injured by a Jamie Carragher tackle in the 3-1 defeat at the hands of arch rivals Liverpool.

Nani will have to put that behind him as United look to beat Liverpool’s 18 league titles.

As for Arsenal (11/4 to win the Premier League) they have failed to win any silverware since 2004 and upcoming star Jack Wilshere will be desperate to end the barren spell.

The 19-year-old has been outstanding for the Gunners in the heart of midfield and has not looked out of place in the international stage either.

If the north London club are to overtake United at the top of the table, they will have to hope Wilshere does not burn out before the end of the season, as his work rate and passing can unlock any defence in the Premier League.

Want £200 Free? Click here to visit Bet365 and claim your free money.

John Terry

The Blues trail Sir Alex Ferguson’s side by 15 points in fifth place but victory would lift them into Champions League contention and skipper Terry accepts there can be no more slip-ups at this stage of the season.

A wretched end to 2010 has effectively killed the west Londoners’ hopes of retaining their Premier League trophy but Terry believes they can still end the season with a flourish – starting against United.

The fixture, originally scheduled for December but postponed because of heavy snow, means the Reds have two huge Premier League fixtures in less than a week – on Saturday they travel to Liverpool – and Terry says they are not untouchable.

“We are very confident at home and the way they (United) play might help us,” Terry said.

“I’m not sure how they are going to come at us but other teams that have come to the Bridge have sat back and we’ve found it hard to break them down.

“It is a must-win game for us and the fans are going to be up for it.”

United have just won four league matches on the road this season and have not triumphed at Stamford Bridge since a 3-0 triumph in 2002.

Next up after the visit to Chelsea is an awkward assignment against bitter rivals Liverpool and Portugal winger Nani has identified the two games as potentially decisive in the race for the title.

“We have some tough games coming up,” the Portugal winger told the official club website.

“It’s the most important period of the season and I think that if we can beat Chelsea and Liverpool then we’ll have a fantastic opportunity to win the league.”

United are likely to be without defensive pair Jonny Evans and Rio Ferdinand because of ankle and calf injuries respectively, while Anderson, Park Ji-Sung and Antonio Valencia are weeks away from returning.

Ferguson is likely to play Wayne Rooney in the lone striker role in front of a five-man midfield if he decides United do not need to rush Tuesday’s game and the advice here would be to look away from the outrights.

It is difficult to make a case for a glut of goals in a game of such significance and the worry is that these two could cancel each other out.

A way in at 4/1 could be the draw-draw half-time/full-time outcome given that United will be happy to try and control this match from the middle and avoid defeat rather than risk going gung-ho and leave with no capital gains.

Want £200 Free? Click here to visit Bet365 and claim your free money.

The FA Cup takes centre stage at the weekend so these are the last Premier League fixtures for a short period so here is a little look at Wednesday night’s games:

Manchester City look to be on the verge of capturing Wolfsburg striker Edin Dzeko but the Bosnian will not be available for their trip to Arsenal, meaning City will again have to rely on the talents of Carlos Tevez to come up with the goals.

Tevez struggled against Blackpool last time out but on another day he could have had a hat-trick, and the Argentine astonishingly missed from the spot to boot.  Arsenal are finally starting to look like a team who can challenge for the title and their impressive 3-1 win against Chelsea demonstrated that they can take points off the teams around them.

Arsenal enjoy home advantage but City have only lost twice on their travels this season, and with the teams so evenly matched this game could easily end in a draw, which is priced at 11/5.  For the braver punter a 2-2 draw pays out at 12/1 and with both sides capable of finding the net this could well be worth some consideration.

Everton have endured a difficult start to the campaign and despite some exciting approach play the Merseyside outfit just don’t seem to be able to score.  David Moyes’ men will need to add at least one striker to their ranks in January and Wednesday’s game with Spurs will be a big test despite the fact they are the home side.

Tottenham have continued to improve over the course of the campaign and in Gareth Bale and Rafael van der Vaart they boast some of the most exciting players in the Premier League and Spurs could be just too strong for an out-of-sorts Everton at Goodison Park.

The Blues tend to up their game against top opposition but they’ve only won twice on home soil so far in the league and with Spurs looking to stay ahead of Chelsea in the table they could well emerge with all three points, which is priced at 8/5.

Bolton have stuttered of late but the Wanderers can count themselves unlucky to have lost to both Chelsea and Liverpool in recent fixtures, with debateable decisions going against Owen Coyle’s high-flying side in both matches.

Bolton entertain Wigan on Wednesday and Coyle will be boosted by the return of Paul Robinson at left-back after he missed the game with Liverpool through suspension.  The Latics looked woeful when they slipped to a home defeat against Newcastle and Roberto Martinez’s men could be set for another difficult contest against their local rivals, with Bolton priced at 8/11 to take all three points and continue their unlikely push for European football.

Aston Villa managed to secure a great 3-3 draw at Stamford Bridge in their last fixture and they face an in-form Sunderland, who are enjoying a decent campaign and like Bolton could be surprise candidates for a spot in Europe (Aston Villa 5/4, draw 9/4, Sunderland 11/5).

Newcastle, who will be without key man Andy Carroll again, face a resurgent West Ham side who have managed to climb out of the relegation place in what could be an interesting tie at St James’ Park (Newcastle 4/5, draw 12/5, West Ham 14/5).

Carlo Ancelotti’s stuttering Chelsea side have a great chance to pick up three points away at Wolves (Wolves 6/1, draw 10/3, Chelsea 4/9).

The final game on Wednesday sees Blackburn host Liverpool, who showed glimpses of a return to form last time out against Bolton (Blackburn 23/10, draw 23/10, Liverpool 6/5).

Want £200 Free? Click here to visit Bet365 and claim your free money.

Manchester City

Tevez (7/2 Premiership Top Scorer) has scored 10 of City’s 24 league goals this season and the side have never lost a Premier League match in which he has scored.

However, he is now at odds with his employers after handing in a transfer request last weekend, citing an irreparable breakdown in his relationship with “certain executives” as the reason.

City have insisted that Tevez will not be sold in January’s transfer window, while boss Roberto Mancini insists that he will do all he can to ensure Tevez stays put to see out his contract which expires in 2014.

Tevez’s representative Kia Joorabchian claims the Argentine will continue to give 100 per cent when ever he pulls on a City shirt, but reports that he could lose the captaincy to Kolo Toure for the Toffees game will place a question mark over how committed he will be.

City have not lost in their last seven league outings, but they do struggle for goals on home turf with only eight so far this term – the joint lowest in the Premier League – so Tevez’s involvement could prove crucial in this clash (EVS – Anytime Goalscorer).

Mancini has a strong squad to choose from with only Nigel De Jong definitely missing due to suspension.

Meanwhile, Everton arrive at Eastlands without a win in their last eight games and are minus the suspended Mikel Arteta, while Steven Pienaar, Tony Hibbert and John Heitinga are injury doubts.

The omens are in favour of the Toffees, who have won on their last three visits to face the Citizens and they have not conceded a goal in any of those encounters.

Anything less than a victory will be the longest boss David Moyes has gone without a win since taking over at Goodison Park, and will equal the record of nine matches without a win recorded back in 1999.

City are expected to win this comfortably, but the potential unsettling effect of the Tevez saga could give Everton a chance to sneak a share of the spoils on a happy hunting ground for the Merseysiders.

Value Bet: Correct Score 0-0 Draw @ 9/1

Bet on the World Cup and get £200. Click here to visit Bet365 and claim your free money.

Johan Djourou

Arsene Wenger’s men highlighted their European credentials with a 5-1 victory over Shakhtar Donetsk at the Emirates on Tuesday.

The Gunners made light work of the 2009 UEFA Cup winners, with Marouane Chamakh (12/1 Champions League Top Scorer 2010/11), Jack Wilshere, Cesc Fabregas, Samir Nasri and Alex Song on the scoresheet.

The result leaves Arsenal top of Group H, with three wins out of three and a three-point advantage over second-placed Shakhtar (1/5 to qualify from Group H).

Europe’s top club prize has eluded Wenger to date, with the nearest he has come to lifting the trophy coming back in 2006, when Arsenal lost to Barcelona in the final.

But Djourou, who was handed a start on Tuesday in the absence of Laurent Koscielny and Thomas Vermaelen, feels their time may have come.

The Swiss international said: “I think the result shows that Arsenal is ready to go as far as possible in the Champions League.

“It’s early but it shows people that we can do well in the competition. We are more or less qualified even though there are still three games left.”

Arsenal (1/8 to win Group H) can move a step closer to qualification for the knockout stages with victory in the Ukraine on November 3.

But the Gunners turn their attentions to important domestic matters this weekend, when they face Manchester City at Eastlands (Man City 13/10, Draw 11/5, Arsenal 2/1 – Match Betting) on Sunday.

Having already lost to West Brom and Chelsea, Lukasz Fabianski has targeted the clash with Roberto Mancini’s men as a must-win game.

The goalkeeper added: “It’s a massive game for us because we want to be in the title race. We want to go there for sure to win the game. We have to win it.”

Bet on the World Cup and get £200. Click here to visit Bet365 and claim your free money.